Electrical busses used in electrical load centers are well known. Electrical busses comprise conductors permitting electrical current to be carried throughout an electrical load center. Electrical busses may contain features permitting attachment of fuses, relays, switches, wires, breakers, and other electrical elements. One type of electrical bus is typically referred to as a “bus bar” which usually serves as a common connection for two or more circuits in a load center. Bus bars usually comprise aluminum or copper; although other convenient conducting materials may also be used.
The application of insulating material in electrical load centers is well known. Load centers may contain one or more electrical busses in close proximity to one another, necessitating use of insulating material or insulation so as to avoid an arcing or shorting event occurring between the busses. Busses must be electrically insulated from each other to avoid a phase-to-phase short circuit. Busses must also be electrically insulated from the electrical load center enclosure to avoid a phase-to-ground short circuit. Some load centers also require that branch circuit breakers be connected to the electrical busses at specific points within the load centers. The shape of the insulating material and the features contained therein permit specific placement of the branch circuit breakers. Typically, insulation in a load center is achieved within a load center using non-conducting materials and using individual branch circuit breaker insulators placed on, between, or among the bus elements.
Injection molding technology has been used to create insulating materials. Injection molding typically comprises injecting heated thermoplastics into a non-plastic mold cavity. As the thermoplastic material cools within the mold cavity, an insulation element hardens into the shape defined by the mold cavity. The injection-molded insulating element is then installed as a separate piece on or among the bus elements within the electrical load center.
A common practice in manufacturing and in assembly of the interior components in prior art load centers is to separately manufacture the “backpan” structure, bus bars, and insulating elements and require a user to manually assemble the interior components of the load center at the time of installation. Specialized skill and knowledge is required by a technician in order to assemble the conventional prior art load centers. The location, orientation, and spacing of the bus elements and insulation elements within the load center must be precisely arranged so as to prevent an arcing, overcurrent, or short circuit event once the busses are placed under load. Consequences of electrical arcing, overcurrent, or short circuits include, without limitation, the destruction of electrical connectors, damage to downline appliances, and even fire. The installation of a conventional load center requires hand assembly and specialized skill to install separate electrical bus bars and insulation elements. Consequently, installation of a conventional load center can be expensive and time intensive.
While load center, electrical bus, and insulation technology are well known, innovations are evolving rapidly. As with many electrical components and technologies, a constant need exists in the art for a simplified method of manufacture and a simplified structure permitting for easier, time saving, and less expensive assembly and easier access to and use by consumers. The need also exists for an apparatus or bus assembly requiring fewer parts during the assembly and installation of interior components of electrical load centers. More specifically, insert-molding technology is needed thereby providing insulating elements in electrical bus bars and/or backpans while also providing electrical isolation between bus bars.
Consequently, the present disclosure provides a means, method, apparatus, and device that simplifies manufacture, assembly, installation, and use of electrical load centers comprising electrical bus elements and insert-molded insulating elements.